Chow Elected Board President

December 15, 2022 - 04:45 PM

At its annual organizational meeting on Dec. 14, the Mt. San Antonio College Board of Trustees elected Gary Chow as president, Dr. Manuel Baca as vice president, and Peter  Hidalgo as clerk. They each will serve one-year terms, effective immediately.  Outgoing president Judy Chen Haggerty was thanked for her service and praised by her colleagues.  During the same meeting, four re-elected trustees were sworn in for new terms: Judy Chen Haggerty, Gary  Chow, Robert Hidalgo and Laura Santos.

Trustee Chow, a Walnut resident, was appointed interim trustee on June 13, 2018. Chow represents Area 2, which encompasses Covina, West Covina, north Walnut, and San Dimas. He was elected to the Board in the general election in 2018, and won re-election in 2022. Chow is a Certified Public Accountant for Tinana & Chow, CPAs, with technical expertise in corporate, partnership, trust and individual taxes. Chow serves as a member of the Walnut Valley Unified School District’s bond oversight committee.  Chow is the current treasurer and a board member for the SGV Charitable Foundation, which supports Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, U.S. military members and local educational institutions in the San Gabriel Valley.

Trustee Baca was first elected to the Board in 1999.  Baca represents Area 7, which covers Pomona and north Diamond Bar. He is a resident of Diamond Bar.  During his tenure on the governing board, he has served multiple terms as president. Dr. Baca is a professor emeritus of Political Science, Management, and Business Law at Rio Hondo College and Lecturer of Higher Education (EdD Program) for the Charter College of Education at California State University, Los Angeles. Currently, Dr. Baca is a member of the advisory committee for Wheelhouse, the Center for Community College Leadership and Research at UC Davis, and Vice Chair of the Foundation for California Community Colleges.

Trustee Hidalgo was elected to the Board in 2020 to represent Area 1, which covers north Pomona, San Dimas, La Verne, and south Glendora. Hidalgo is a government affairs executive in the telecommunications industry, with over 20 years of experience in both public and private industry leading public affairs and communication teams.  Hidalgo previously served as press secretary for former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan. He is a board member for The Learning Centers at Fairplex, Just Us 4 Youth, and LAs BEST.  Hidalgo also served as chair of the San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership. Hidalgo attended Citrus College, where his experience as a student leader set the course for his professional life in public affairs.